At first, Fluffy refused adamantly. But when Wayne produced Fawkes' tail feather and claimed Dumbledore and Hagrid had permitted his entry, Fluffy reluctantly stepped aside and retreated to a corner.
Wayne pulled open the trapdoor and peered down into the abyss below—a seemingly bottomless darkness.
His wand shot out several white orbs of light, illuminating the passage. The drop was dozens of metres deep, clearly extended by an Engorgement Charm.
Fortunately, he had come prepared.
Pulling out his Nimbus 2000, Wayne mounted the broom and slowly descended. He hadn't mastered any flying spells yet—utterly rubbish—so he had to rely on tools.
Three metres above the ground, Wayne dismounted, landing on the soft vines below. His body bounced slightly, as if on a trampoline.
Honestly, it was quite comfortable.
The Devil's Snare vines were soft and slippery, almost like... tentacles?
Tentacles?!
Wayne jolted upright, and the sudden movement agitated the vines, which began coiling around him from all directions.
"Lumos Maxima!"
"Relashio!"
The chamber brightened as if under midday sun. The Devil's Snare, meeting its natural enemy, instinctively tried to retract its vines, but the weakening spell left them limp and sprawled across the floor.
Wayne marvelled at his Head of House's kindness.
Devil's Snare sounded terrifying, but it was easily dealt with—the spells required were first-year level.
Well, even untrained wizards could manage the Wand-Lighting Charm. Additionally, it served as a cushion, preventing intruders from injuring themselves.
Dumbledore had gone out of his way to ensure Harry could pass this hurdle.
Flicking his wand, Wayne scattered the vines and laid out a bed of mature Chomping Cabbages, all in a comatose state, ready to awaken at the slightest touch.
Not satisfied, Wayne added two vials of Rage Potion to boost the little darlings' attack speed.
Finally, he rearranged the Devil's Snare vines over the top, making it look unchanged.
Quirrell was sure to love his gift.
Wayne doubted Voldemort would intervene in the first challenge—he was far too weak.
If he had that kind of power, why bother trading a dragon egg for passage past the Three-Headed Dog?
Still, he had to target Quirrell and protect Harry—otherwise, old Dumbledore would throw a fit. Wayne had prepared the Devil's Snare planted in his trunk for this very purpose.
He set up a trigger mechanism so that whenever someone passed through, he would sense it and return promptly to reset the scene.
After completing these preparations, he picked up the trunk and headed towards the next challenge.
As he walked down the stone corridor, a faint rustling sound and the delicate chime of bells reached his ears.
At the end of the corridor lay a brightly lit room with a high ceiling, where countless small birds, glittering like gemstones, fluttered their wings in flight.
Wayne's expression remained impassive as he glanced at the corner. Two flying broomsticks lay there quietly. Could the hint be any more obvious?
Since this was a Quidditch challenge, Bludgers were a must.
He took out ten specially crafted Bludgers, each made of steel and inscribed with runes representing speed, sharpness, and impact.
A single hit from these might not drill a hole through someone, but crippling them was entirely possible.
"Gardevoir," Wayne murmured.
Whoosh!
The petite maid appeared beside him. "Gardevoir!"
A blue light flickered in Gardevoir's eyes, and the buzzing noise vanished as hundreds of key birds froze mid-air.
Wayne leisurely located the correct key—a bird with sky-blue wings that stood out starkly from the rest.
He snapped off the wings and stuffed the key into the belly of one of the Bludgers, completing the task.
With that done, Gardevoir took Wayne's hand and Apparated away, leaving the key birds to resume their lively fluttering.
The next challenge was a Wizard's Chess set arranged by Professor McGonagall. The chess pieces were towering, each at least two metres tall.
The side near the entrance was black, while the opposite side was white, with a door behind the white pieces.
Winning the chess game was the key to progressing.
Wayne wasn't in a hurry to cheat; instead, he took a moment to admire the pieces. True to Professor McGonagall's craftsmanship, their intricacy and durability were astonishing. He didn't know when these pieces had been made, but the fact that they could last until the end of term was impressive enough.
Wayne placed his wand against one of the pieces, sensing the flow of magical power. Understanding an object's composition through magic was another way to improve one's transfiguration skills.
Unfortunately, the ability to sense magical currents was a barrier that stopped ninety-nine per cent of wizards, let alone analysing them.
After a long pause, Wayne finally withdrew his hand and turned to the silent Gardevoir.
"Gardevoir, it's your turn."
"Gardevoir!"
Gardevoir nodded and began moving the black pieces, swiftly overwhelming the white side and securing victory.
As the two approached the next door, Wayne pointed his wand at the white pieces, which had already repaired themselves and returned to their original positions, muttering incantations.
"Protego, Protego Totalum, Fianto Duri, Duro."
By the end, the pieces were glowing brilliantly. Satisfied, Wayne moved on.
The next challenge was a Mountain Troll guard set up by Quirrell himself, even larger than the one that had appeared in the castle earlier.
Upon seeing them, the Troll scratched its head.
After a long pause, it finally remembered its task and charged forward, brandishing its club.
Gardevoir used Hypnosis, sending it into a deep slumber.
Suppressing his disgust, Wayne collected some of the Troll's slime before proceeding to the next trial.
As soon as he stepped through the door, two walls of flame erupted simultaneously, sealing the room. In the centre stood a table with seven differently shaped bottles arranged upon it.
Wayne added a drop of the slime he'd collected earlier into each bottle. Just imagining the smell made his face turn green.
'Why am I so disgusting?!'
Successfully grossed out by his own actions, Wayne hastily recalled Gardevoir and summoned Ho-Oh instead.
Wreathed in sacred flames, he bypassed the revolting potions entirely and proceeded smoothly to the final chamber.
The room was eerily quiet, dominated only by a towering mirror. After some thought, he ultimately decided against tampering with anything.
The Mirror of Erised was far too advanced. He couldn't fathom how Dumbledore had managed to embed a physical Philosopher's Stone within its illusory depths.
Perhaps after Harry completed the trials, he could ask for some pointers.
With a flash of fire, Wayne reappeared in the fourth-floor corridor, where Fluffy excitedly bounded over to greet him.
"Alright, alright, here's your reward."
Tossing several steaks into Fluffy's three gaping maws, Wayne refrained from attacking the creature.
Truthfully, he could have simply cast a Silencing Charm on Fluffy, nullifying the musical weakness required to pass this trial.
But doing so would have forced Quirrell or Voldemort to take drastic measures.
The dog belonged to Hagrid, and any harm coming to it would make future requests for material-gathering assistance rather awkward.
Best leave things as they were.
The remaining trials would give Quirrell enough trouble anyway.
Without further hesitation, Wayne opened the door and vanished down the corridor.
...
Shortly after his departure, Dumbledore arrived.
The elderly wizard wore a nightgown, adjusting his spectacles as he rubbed sleep from his eyes, grumbling, "Really now, couldn't Young Master Lawrence consider this old man's needs? Must he conduct his business at such ungodly hours?"
Despite his complaints, Dumbledore remained vigilant. If Wayne's amusement came at Harry's expense, there'd be trouble.
Fluffy, still contentedly chewing his reward, obediently retreated to his corner with practised ease that was almost pitiful to witness.
Dumbledore lifted the trapdoor and dropped straight through.
Half an hour later...
The Headmaster returned to his office looking decidedly worse for wear, his formerly pristine nightgown now tattered.
Having inspected each challenge, he could only conclude: Quirrell was fortunate to have such a student.
Still, he'd noticed Wayne's contingency measures. Harry should face no real danger during his attempt.
Dumbledore shook his head.
Age was catching up with him. Never had he imagined being bested by traps set by a first-year.
...
"Why do I get the impression you're enjoying this?"
The following morning, Cedric regarded Wayne with suspicion.
"Am I?" Wayne replied nonchalantly around a mouthful of cod fillet.
"You've been humming," Cedric deadpanned. "Valentine's Day is tomorrow, isn't it?"
Wayne's chopsticks froze mid-air, hovering over the chicken pieces.
Recently obsessed with magic and Gardevoir, he had completely forgotten about this.
"Don't talk nonsense, I'm just happy because it's the weekend."
At that moment, the post arrived.
A large flock of owls flew into the Great Hall, feathers swirling everywhere. Wayne looked up, sensing something amiss.
After entering the Great Hall, at least several dozen owls made a beeline for the Hufflepuff table—their trajectory unmistakable.
Were they coming for him?
His guess proved correct. Dozens of owls landed on the table before him, the space so cramped that two were even pushed off the edge.
Cedric exclaimed in surprise, "How much stuff have you ordered?"
"I haven't bought anything..." Wayne scratched his head in confusion, but proceeded to untie all the letters and parcels from the owls.
The result... every letter was from witches at the school, nearly all of which contained invitations for Valentine's dates, while the parcels were filled with chocolates.
"Hahaha." Cedric gloated, "With so many options, who will you choose? Some of these chocolates might even contain Love Potions."
Wayne glanced up and noticed many girls watching him secretly for his reaction. Those who met his gaze would fluster and quickly look down.
Hermione and Cho seemed to have guessed what was happening, simultaneously tightening their grips on their forks, bending them out of shape.
Wayne gave Cedric and the other nosy badgers a sidelong glance before remarking airily, "Indeed, I'm quite torn about who to spend Valentine's with. But what about you lot... who will you be spending it with?"
Snap!
The entire group turned to stone.
Cedric's smile froze, then twisted into something sorrowful—an utterly comical sight.
Bloody hell!
I'm going back to Gotham!
Satisfied by their pained, twisted expressions, Wayne happily gathered his haul. But as he picked up the final plain white envelope, his hand paused slightly.
The letter was signed by Newt Scamander.
After breakfast, Wayne found a quiet corner to open Newt's letter.
Dear Wayne,
By the time you receive this, I'll have left New York and likely reached my destination. Rest assured, I'll do everything in my power to find what you seek.
P.S. Tina is quite upset you haven't written lately. Do send her a reply soon.
P.P.S. We're moving back to Dorset in June, so I may attend your Order of Merlin ceremony.
Looking forward to meeting again. Wishing you all the best. Your loyal Hufflepuff senior.
The letter was deliberately vague.
Wayne understood Newt's caution, avoiding accidental breaches of their Unbreakable Vow, and wary of prying eyes who might intercept it.
Like... the one in the tower.
It was only February, bitterly cold, yet Newt had already begun his search. This moved Wayne deeply.
Tina's displeasure, however, gave him a headache. He had forgotten to write.
Well, best dash off a letter tonight.
Tucking the letter away, Wayne hurried to his Defence Against the Dark Arts class.
...
Perhaps because Valentine's Day approached, even the professors' lessons followed a theme.
Professor Flitwick distributed heart-shaped origami, instructing everyone to practise the Engorgement Charm.
With a spell to enlarge it, Professor McGonagall had the young wizards turn snails into roses, though few succeeded.
Overnight, the castle seemed filled with a pink atmosphere.
Some mischievous students even hung pink ribbons with glittering sequins in the corridors, sparkling brightly.
Filch was so furious that he scoured the castle for the culprits, but the more he searched, the more decorations appeared—even the stiff suits of armour ended up with roses perched on their heads.
Amid this atmosphere where even a sow would feel amorous, Wayne, unusually, did not accompany Hermione or Cho. Instead, he followed Cedric to watch Quidditch practice.
"Why the sudden interest in Quidditch?" Cedric asked on their way out of the castle, sensing something off but unable to figure it out.
'No, I'm running for my life.'
Wayne solemnly instructed, "If we run into Cho or Hermione later, just nod along to whatever I say, got it? Not a single extra word."
Cedric was baffled but, seeing Wayne's serious expression, agreed.
Sure enough, before they even reached the gates, they encountered Cho.
"Wayne." The usually serene girl lowered her head shyly, her voice barely louder than a mosquito's hum.
"Do... do you have time tomorrow?"
The two almost missed her words.
"Of course." Wayne gazed at the budding young woman, his tone gentle. "Even if you hadn't come to me, I was planning to find you.
"How about flying a round at the Quidditch Pitch in the afternoon?"
"And the morning?" Cho asked hopefully, delighted to hear Wayne wanted to seek her out. Naturally, she wished to spend the entire day with him.
"Sorry." The boy apologised. "I already promised Cedric the morning. He still has some questions about map-making, and I need to help him."
"Right, Cedric?"
"Eh? Y-yeah, right." Cedric blinked in confusion but nodded along.
"Alright then." Though disappointed, Cho was content with half a day. She shot Cedric an annoyed glare before leaving.
What an idiot. After all this time, he still hasn't learned—wasting Wayne's time.
"Wait, I don't have any problems with map-making now," Cedric protested after Cho left.
"No, you do." Wayne didn't explain, nudging him forward. "Come on, let's get to practice."
...
Two hours later, the exhausted Hufflepuff Quidditch team wrapped up training.
Spotting Wayne, Hermione bit her lip but still hurried after him, books in hand.
"Wayne, do you have time tomorrow? Want to study together?"
Cedric smirked.
Serves you right, mate! Let's see how you wriggle out of this one!
"Of course," Wayne repeated his earlier script, ruffling Hermione's hair. "Even if you hadn't come, I was going to find you."
"How about the morning?"
"Cedric's still struggling with his map. I need to tutor him in the afternoon."
"Right, Cedric?"
Cedric stared at Wayne in disbelief, then caught the disdain in Hermione's eyes.
Everything clicked.